A pivotal Game Boy Advance game is coming to Switch Online

Nintendo is bringing the Game Boy Advance Fire Emblem to Switch Online’s expansion pack on June 23, 2023, roughly 20 years after the RPG first launched. Fire Emblem, officially called Fire Emblem The Blazing Blade in Japan, was the first entry in the series to release outside Japan and receive an official localization.

Fire Emblem‘s international success convinced Nintendo to continue investing in the series and publishing outside Japan, so Three Houses and Engage exist because of this little gem.

If you were hoping to see its sequel, The Binding Blade, starring Roy of Super Smash Bros. fame, you’re in for a letdown. The Binding Blade is coming to Switch Online – but only the Japanese version of the service and without an official localization.

Fire Emblem follows three protagonists. One is Lyn, who also appeared in Fire Emblem Warriors. Her story centers on her attempts to reclaim her stolen home and make peace with the grandfather who banished her family and acts as a tutorial prologue.

Lyn, Eliwood, and Hector must amass an army strong enough to fight back the forces that would destroy their homeland in the Game Boy Advance version of Fire Emblem, coming to #NintendoSwitch for #NintendoSwitchOnline + Expansion Pack members on 6/23! pic.twitter.com/CGWjXsuH9C

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) June 16, 2023

The main portion of the game follows Eliwood, father of Roy and heir to a small province in a league of allied nations. When his father disappears, Eliwood leads a band of warriors to track him down and uncovers a dark plot to throw the continent into war and chaos.

Once you finish Eliwood’s tale the first time, you unlock Hector’s story. Hector’s path is a slight retelling of Eliwood’s story with new missions, alternate routes for certain maps, and a deeper look at the rank, corrupt politics of Fire Emblem’s world.

This is old-school Fire Emblem, featuring the once-traditional weapon triangle, branching mission paths, mandatory permadeath, and often obscure methods of recruiting allies. It’s definitely worth following a guide for this one.

Nintendo has slowly been adding new Game Boy Advance games to the Switch Online service throughout 2023, and now, only Golden Sun remains from the games the Big N first teased.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF